Coffee Machines

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25 of 26 people found the following review helpful.
Much better and easier to use than my Dolce Gusto Piccolo. Ignore the useless diagrams & follow the instructions below;
By ROROBLU'S MUM
This is around the same size as the smaller-of-the-range Dolce Gusto machines, on a par with the Piccolo model that I've had and used for the last two years. I wasn't sure about having an 'electronic' model, and admittedly the stupid, stupid instructions had me confused, but it was a doddle to operate. Additionally, this looks sleeker and classier than the manual Piccolo model, and will now take pride of place in my kitchen.Don't bother trying to understand the operating instructions, which only have pretty useless diagrams and do the following:Before first use, fill the container and place an empty mug under the drip spout. Turn on the machine, wait 30 seconds til the flashing red light on the side turns green, and then turn the dial in the middle of the top cover (located in between the blue 'cold' button and the red 'hot' button) to the top position (which allows max water to flow thru). Do not insert a drinks capsule, but do lower the handle mechanism and press the blue cold button and allow the mug to fill - all this is doing is rinsing out the mechanisms.Then, select your drink: very handily, a small selection is supplied, each with a level of liquid indicated on the cover. Insert the pod into the drawer, press down to pierce, check there is enough water in the dispenser, then turn the middle dial to position 1-6, depending on which drink you want (see cover of pod), and when the water level on the top of the machine indicates that the correct amount of water will be dispensed through the pod - it 'lights up' to the selected level (like a levelscore indicator on an arcade machine!) in glowing green - just press the blue or red button, depending on whether it's a cold or hot drink you're preparing.The machine will dispense the right amount of water for the drink selected, then if the 'creamer' pod needs to be inserted, just follow the same steps. If you want less water in your drink, simply pressing any button stops water coming through, before the allotted amount is dispensed. With this machine, even if you walk away and forget you're making a drink, there will be no spills, as long as your mug is big enough for the drink you want, as only the right amount of liquid comes through before the machine goes into economy/sleep mode.The bit where the drink sits can be adjusted to different heights, depending on how tall the mug is; this bit is also easier to remove for cleaning than on the Piccolo model. A word of advice - remove the pods straight away, and rinse out the pod holder if there is spillage, as leaving a pod in can cause the holder to become jammed. A couple of times, I have left the pod in by mistake, and then the holder has been hard to pull out, and has needed gentle manipulation.Overall, this is excellent and value for money at the amazon price. Whilst I've always been happy with the drinks from my Piccolo, this machine has made me realise that I've been diluting some more than I needed, and the drinks are better. I didn't think I'd part with my Piccolo model, but there's a new guy in town!

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
Snazzy little number....
By Trendy plus size mom
Read loads of reviews about which coffee machine to buy and was not disappointed with this choice. Lovely coffee and so easy to make. The choice of flavours available is great although as I live in the Middle East I pay slightly over the odds for the pods but will research for cheaper prices online.Basically this machine allows you to pop in your pods and select the amount of water you need the machine to dispense. The guide is written the pod itself in a bar display. There is a small wheel which you move up or down to move the electronic display and then you simply press the button for hot or cold drink. Its totally automatic and very quick. The machine switches itself off after a few minutes in case you forget to turn it off. If your selection is for a hot drink then rest assured that's exactly what you get, a steaming hot drink. Use latte clear glasses for a visually pleasing effect. I use flavoured syrups too added to the bottom of my glass. It's got an easy to cean drip tray and other than that there is not really any other cleaning needed. I have had my machine a month now and love it.Only small negative point is the water reservoir is small but it's not a big problem unless all your household drink coffee...In a nutshell a great buy for good variety of tasty coffees (and teas) as good as the coffee chains make.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Absolutely brilliant
By A. Skudder
I have had an almost identical Dolce Gusto machine for a couple of years and have been very happy with the espresso and americano coffee, while my wife will vouch for the hot chocolate. Yes, the supplies cost more than instant coffee, but it does taste a lot better and works out a lot cheaper than a very similar drink from a coffee shop. I particularly like being able to get a pretty decent coffee almost immediately instead of waiting ages for a filter machine to fill up a jug, and to just make one cup instead of a whole jug if all you want is one cup.I think I prefer the taste of drinks from the Nespresso machines, but they do cost more, as do the cartridges, and refills for Dolce Gusto are a lot more easy to get hold of as they are stocked by all the main supermarkets.The only small gripe I have had with my old machine is that it is manual: you have to control the amount of water yourself and can either make the drink too weak or strong, or could get distracted and overflow a cup. That problem is solved with this model which lets you select exactly the number of millilitres you need for a particular drink first. This was always a problem for me with the Lungo coffee because none of my cups is the right size and it was a matter using a cup that is too large and then trying to guess when to stop.Yes you can make a better tasting coffee by buying an expensive brand of beans, griding them yourself and using an espresso machine but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this machine for a balance between quality, convenience and price. It is also versatile in being able to make lots of different types of drink, even if I do only really use it for straightforward espressos and americanos myself.